The mini-game portrays crudely animated sexual intercourse between the main character, Carl "CJ" Johnson, and his chosen in-game girlfriend. The name of the mod is derived from the girlfriend's offer for the main character to come into her home for "coffee", a euphemism for sex.

Although the "Hot Coffee" mini-game was completely disabled and its existence was only highlighted after the mod's release for the PC version on June 9, 2005,[1] the assets for the mini-game were also discovered in both the PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions of the game, and people found ways to enable the mini-game via console video game hacking tools. By the middle of July 2005, the mini-game's discovery attracted considerable controversy from lawmakers and politicians, prompting the game to be re-assessed with an "Adults Only (AO)" rating by the U.S. Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), and refused classification in Australia, resulting in its removal from sale.

An updated version of San Andreas has since been released with the mini-game removed completely, allowing the game to regain its original rating. A patch for the original version of the game, Cold Coffee, was designed to counter edit the script and disable the mini-game and crash the game if one attempts to access it.[2]

Throughout the game, Carl "CJ" Johnson, the game's protagonist, may date up to six girlfriends, carrying out various "date missions" in order to improve his relationship with a particular woman. Once CJ has become particularly close to a girlfriend, or if he has collected all oysters in the game, his girlfriend may end a successful date by inviting him into her house for "coffee," from which CJ may choose to accept or decline. Improving relationships with girlfriends through successful dates and other related activities will eventually reward CJ with new items, such as vehicles and special wardrobes, along with pre-existing gameplay benefits (e.g. dating a nurse grants CJ with free visits to the hospital without losing his weapons after dying).

In the unmodified version of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, players see an exterior view of the girlfriend's house while muffled voices of CJ and his girlfriend engaging in sexual intercourse are heard. However, the Hot Coffee mod replaces this with a minigame which allows the player to actually enter the girlfriend's bedroom and control Carl's actions during sex, with the same controls as dancing.

Rockstar Games, the publisher of the Grand Theft Auto series, initially denied allegations that the mini-game was "hidden" in the video game, stating that the Hot Coffee modification (which they claim violated the game's End User License Agreement) is the result of "hackers" making "significant technical modifications to and reverse engineering" the game's code.[3] However, this claim was undermined when a user known as gothi from the website PS2 Save Tools released the "GTA:SA Censor Remover" tool for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions in June 2005, which allowed the minigame to be accessed on consoles. These new methods of accessing "Hot Coffee" demonstrated that the controversial content was, indeed, built into the console versions as well.

The PC mod itself is only an edited copy of the main game script file ("main.scm") with a single bit changed. The mod was also made possible on the console versions by changing the bit inside a user's saved game file or by using a third-party modding device. Take-Two has stated that the mod constitutes a violation of the End User License Agreement,[4] even though modification of the main.scm file is common within the mod community.

However, the oral sex animations are clearly visible in the background during one scene of the mission "Cleaning the Hood", even in the re-released game.[5] This may explain why the minigame was not simply removed when the decision was made to cut it from the game; its assets were already in use elsewhere.[6]

The revelation of the mini-game sparked a fair amount of controversy around Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, with some politicians firing harsh words at both the game's developer and the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), the organization which establishes content ratings for video games in North America. It also rekindled the debate over the influence of video games in general with new protests against several other games such as Killer7, The Sims 2, and Bully.

Jack Thompson was one of the first to criticize the game for its hidden content, believing violent media is one of the main causes of violent crime in America. Thompson lashed out against Rockstar Games on several occasions for previous games they have developed.

U.S. SenatorHillary Clinton suggested that new regulations be put on video games sales.[7] The ESRB conducted an investigation that ultimately changed the game's rating from Mature to Adults Only 18+.[8] Also, Congress passed a resolution to have the Federal Trade Commission investigate whether Rockstar intentionally undermined the ESRB by having the content in the game.[9]

In New York, a class action lawsuit was filed by Florence Cohen, an 85-year-old grandmother who purchased the game for her 14-year-old grandson (according to the old rating of "M", the game is typically considered inappropriate for this age). Cohen's lawsuit claimed that Rockstar Games and Take-Two Interactive, the publisher of the game, are guilty of deception, false advertising, fraud and abuse. The accusation of deception is based on the change from M-rated to AO, meaning according to the lawsuit that the original rating was a deceptive practice.[10]

A protest group known as the Peaceholics organized a protest on August 4, 2005 at Rockstar's headquarters. The group demonstrated against San Andreas as well as the game Bully, the latter due to fears that the content could inspire children to become bullies themselves.[11][12]

On July 8, 2005, the ESRB announced that it was aware of and opening an investigation into the circumstances surrounding 'Hot Coffee.' The investigation examined "whether the mod unlocks preexisting code...or is actually a purely third-party creation."[13]

On July 20, 2005, the ESRB announced that it was changing the rating of GTA:SA from Mature (M) to Adults Only (AO), making this the first and only Grand Theft Auto game to receive an AO Rating.[14] Rockstar stated that it would discontinue manufacturing the current version of the game, and produce a new version that would not include the content that is unlocked by the Hot Coffee mod. In the fourth quarter of 2005, Rockstar released this "clean" version with the "Hot Coffee" scenes removed (Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas 1.01), allowing the rating of the game to be reverted to its original Mature rating.[15]

On July 29, 2005, as a result of the newly discovered scenes, the Australian Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) revoked the game's "MA15+" classification (the highest rating then available for computer games in Australia) and changed the game's rating to Refused Classification (RC), which officially banned the original version from being sold in the country. The patched version was given an "MA15+" classification on September 12, 2005.[16]

On August 10, 2005, Rockstar Games officially released a patch for San Andreas.[17] The patch fixed many performance issues and bugs. However, the patch also disabled the controversial "Hot Coffee" scenes, even if the "Hot Coffee" mod was re-installed.

There was little reaction in Europe. The game was already rated "18+" by PEGI prior to the release of the mod. Furthermore, PEGI ratings are enforced by law in many European nations, making it a criminal offense to sell 18+ games to minors. In the United Kingdom, the BBFC similarly gave the game an "18" rating (as of 2012, the BBFC no longer classifies video games, and PEGI was adopted instead).

eBay removed copies of GTA:SA that had been reported by the eBay community. eBay claimed that GTA:SA violated the terms of the eBay seller policy and could not be sold unless it was located in the Everything Else > Mature Audiences section. This section requires a credit card to validate the age of the eBay user.[citation needed]

On August 24, 2005, Rockstar announced a mandatory recall for all games still owned by the general public.[citation needed] Consumers who had already purchased the game were allowed to keep it in certain areas, but with the patch installed, although players cannot be forced to return (or destroy) existing copies. Given the higher value of the "uncensored" versions, it is doubtful that many gamers will return their copies voluntarily. However, those who were over 18 (or 21 depending on region) have grandfathered these copies of the game to their collection.[citation needed]

Version 2.0 of GTA:SA, which omitted the sexual mini-game content, was designed by Rockstar to crash if the game data files were modified. This made it necessary for players to use a previous version if they wished to install multiplayer game modifications such as San Andreas Multiplayer or Multi Theft Auto and other game modifications that include new scripts or vehicles. Certain pirated or illegally distributed versions of the original game may also be made available on the Internet or from illegal retail outlets. Downgraders are also available to unpatch and revert the game version and support the Hot Coffee mini-game again.

This limitation later was overcome[19] by two members of the unofficial Grand Theft Automodding community, who discovered a method of creating modifications which would work with version 2.0. Users of version 2.0 might still need to use previous versions or use a downgrade in order to install a mod not created with the new method.

On January 27, 2006, the city of Los Angeles filed a lawsuit against Take-Two Interactive, the game's publisher, accusing the company of failing to disclose the game's sexual content.[21]

On June 8, 2006, Rockstar, Take-Two and the FTC settled. They are required to "clearly and prominently disclose on product packaging and in any promotion or advertisement for electronic games, content relevant to the rating, unless that content had been disclosed sufficiently in prior submissions to the rating authority." Should the companies violate the settlement they are liable for $11,000 in civil penalties.[22]

In 2006 attorneys brought several class actions alleging Take-Two committed consumer fraud. In December 2007, a settlement of the litigation was reached.[23] In 2008, Ted Frank filed an objection to the settlement on the grounds that the settlement sought $1 million for attorneys' fees, but the total payout to class members was less than $27,000.[24][25] A court hearing was already scheduled on June 25, 2008. Frank previously told GamePolitics that the lawsuits were meritless and extortionate.[26]

As of June 25, 2008, fewer than 2,700 claimants responded to the settlement, for which the plaintiff's attorneys expressed disappointment.[27] Frank expressed that this was further proof that the case had no merit.

As of September 1, 2009, Take Two agreed to settle a securities class action suit related to the controversy over the game and over backdating allegations for just over $20 million.[28]